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Summary:

Elegant though incomplete copy of what Pasha Mohamad Khan has identified as "Story of the love of Māh-i Munīr son of ‘Arab-Shāh for Khūb-chihrah, merchant’s daughter" (cf. Punjab University Āẕar Collection, MS 16-S-8545G), extensively illustrated with many miniatures (see note on catalog card). Contributions to the transcription also from Pasha Mohamad Khan.

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Ms. codex.Title supplied by cataloguer.Accompanying material: Slip of wove paper with manuscript description in black ink in hand of G. Meredith-Owens, "The romance of Māh-munīr the son of King ʻArabshāh and Khūb-chihreh, daughter of the merchant Abū Naṣr. This tale seems to be otherwise unknown and is probably an Indian composition. Late 18th - early 19th century with contemporary illustrations in the Kashmiri style."

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Chiefly quaternions in the latter part of the codex, elsewhere gatherings are now altered for interleaving with an extremely haphazard result ; middle of the quire marks in the form of oblique strokes appear in latter gatherings ; catchwords present ; blank leaves interleaved to protect minatures.

Layout:

Written mainly in 11 lines per page, though occasionally four or fewer lines accompanied by a half or near full-page miniature, or three lines accompanied by decorative arrangement of four lines on the diagonal, forming a diamond shape.

Script:

Nastaʻlīq ; bold, elegant Indian hand in a heavy line ; serifless, with marked effect of words descending to baseline, elongation and exaggerated thickness of horizontal strokes, pointing mainly in distinct or conjoined dots.

Decoration:

Elegant illuminated headpiece (ʻunwān / sarlawḥ) at opening consisting of small rectangular piece with gold cartouche carrying the basmalah flanked by floral motifs in pink, yellow, blue, and red on fields of dark blue, surmounted by tall scalloped w-shaped piece filled with delicate floral vegetal decoration in pink, red, orange, white, green, etc. on grounds of gold and dark blue with red and white vegetal accents, set in a well of black bands flanking a heavy gold band with floral motifs ; written area throughout surrounded by an elaborate vegetal border with floral motifs in green and yellow with red-orange accents, defined by bands of gold and red with outermost red and blue fillets ; margin also defined by black fillets ; keywords rubricated ; occasional textual dividers in the form of red inverted commas ; occasional illuminated floral accents set off text arranged on the diagonal ; 29 near full-page and 43 half-page miniatures in the Kashmīrī style, with generous use of lavender, red-orange, orange, yellow, lime green, and slate blue with occasional gold ; a few pencil drawings (see title page, page facing incipit page, etc.).